ItiO BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



the leaf itself. All of us probably know how much more 

 rapidly spotted tobacco will cure ; and where the stalk is 

 split, it will cure more rapidly than where the stalk was 

 hung with twine ; and, as I said, where the leaves are picked, 

 the drying out is much more rapid than by the old methods. 

 Curing is not drying down tobacco. We can dry tobacco 

 in a few hours, with artificial heat, and ruin it. The drying 

 has got to go slowly enough so that the chemical changes 

 can take place. It has got to come to the color ; and if }^ou 

 dry it to a certain point before it comes to the color, the 

 leaf is gone, not good for anything. It has to turn first 

 yellow, and then brown, and come completely to color while 

 still pretty damp. Now, that can be hastened by the use 

 of artificial heat, without damage to the quality of the 

 tobacco, if it is done right ; but artificial heat in a tobacco 

 barn is an edged tool, and much more likely to do harm 

 than good. We have cured two crops with artificial heat, 

 cured them right, and we have known of other tobacco 

 dealers that had a most excellent quality ; but we had to be 

 very careful that the heat was damp heat and not dry heat, 

 and we stopped it at times and let the tobacco draw, or we 

 should have hayed it down. The theory of priming the 

 leaf, you take the leaf when it is perfect, when it needs to 

 draw nothing from the stalk and to give nothing to the 

 stalk, the stalk can do it no more good ; take it off and 

 hang it by itself, and cure it as it should be cured, give it 

 time to come to color, and you have a perfect leaf. I 

 think tobacco can be cured on the string as well as on the 

 stalk, and give tobacco of just as good quality, if it is done 

 right. 



Ex-Governor Hoard. You find that depends very much 

 upon its stage of ripeness? 



Dr. Jenkins. Yes, sir. 



Ex-Governor Hoard. They commence to ripen at the 

 bottom first? 



Dr. Jenkins. Yes. 



Ex-Governor Hoard. You then repeat the picking in 

 proportion to its stage of ripeness? 



Dr. Jenkins. We repeat the picking in proportion to its 



